Review of Milton's Secret (2016) by Stephen J — 02 Oct 2016

What I liked best about this film was how the relationships between the characters deepened as the story unfolded. The anguish of bullying was not sensationalized, but rather it was kept quiet. That made the bullying all the more real. Neither was Donald Southerland's character's elevated consciousness over-played. His character (Grandfather Howard) had flaws and quirks that were there for us to see. Again, the director grounded us in real life, rather than offer phantasies about enlightenment. I loved the performances.

I saw this film when it was featured at the Vancouver Film Festival last weekend. The audience loved it. In the discussion afterward, one of the audience members asked the director, Barnet Bain, how he coaxed such real performances from his actors. Bain said, "It's all in the casting. Once you've got that right, you can stand back and let the characters create the film." But I got the sense that Bain did more than stand back. His actors were appreciative of the atmosphere he created for them to bring the story to life. I got the feeling that, for them, this was a labor of love. It was gratifying to see how the audience embraced it so enthusiastically.